McKenzie Neck Exercises

Posted by mark in Neck Pain exercises | 2 comments

Here are how to do the McKenzie neck exercises correctly. They are by far the best exercises to do for the majority of neck pain for a couple of very good reasons.

The first reason is that they are designed to put extension forces onto the lower cervical vertebrae which is exactly what you should be doing (but  more of that later).

The one thing that i would like to add is that these are very good exercises but they are simply that, exercises. They must be used in conjunction with good postural habits, that is sitting and standing ‘tall’.

Neck Exercises for disc bulges and pinched nerves.

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The forward head posture

The number one cause of  neck pain and disc bulges is the forward head posture. Your head weighs 8-10 lbs and when you sit and stand poorly you put enormous stresses on your neck structures( muscles, discs, tendons and capsules). In fact, if you sit and stand in correct posture your head should be sitting on top of your shoulders very much like a golf ball sits on top of a tee.

However, when you start to sit forward( ie slouchat the computer) you then require your muscles,  tendons and other parts of your back and neck to ‘hold you up ‘against gravity. This is not only fatigues your muscles  but also produces pain. This is why the mayo clinic states that ‘prolonged forward head posture leads to long term muscle strains, disc herniations and pinched nerves’.

This is also why getting treatments or doing stretches or taking pain killers or even having surgery is ridiculous if you dont remove the major cause to your neck pain.

How to fix your neck pain without going broke in the process

Posted by mark in Neck Pain Causes, Neck Pain Essentials | 0 comments

Neckache is commonly misunderstood. I will show you just how easy it is to fix neck ache without having to get numerous treatments, without hours of stretching and without pain killers or surgery.

I am also going to show you why getting treatments or doing exercises for your neck ache is generally a fruitless pursuit. You can seek out the purported best neck exercises but none of these will give you anything more than temporary relief at best.I am going to  explain to you why you have been suffering from either  recurrent bouts of pain or constant pain and what you must do to become pain free permanently. This is not something magical, it has nothing to do with gimmicks or gadgets, it is simply about physics, the laws of gravity and your body mechanics. This is the answer to removing your neck ache. It is simple and straighforward and will make perfect common sense to you.

Firstly: No amount of Treatments,  anti-inflammatories, exercises for your neck ache, yoga classes, Pilates, TENS, Ultrasound, osteopathy, Physiotherapy, Chiropractic, Massages or stretches will ever keep your neck pain free permanently if you do not remove the causes.

3 Great ways to treat Tension Headaches

Posted by mark in Neck Pain Essentials | 0 comments

Here are 3 ways to help treat those dreaded tension headaches.

It might sound paradoxical at first, but this is very effective in relieving tension headache.

Try to soak your feet in hot water to get relief from tension headache. By drawing blood to your feet, the hot-water foot bath will help in easing pressure on the blood vessels in the head. Pressure on the blood vessels in the head following a contraction of the muscles in the head and neck is the primary reason for tension headache, and this technique, without medication, might do just that – ease the pressure on the blood vessels.

If you cannot find hot water for soaking your feet, you might use a hot compress on your forehead or at the back of your neck. Since the contraction of muscles causes headache, this hot compress might help in relaxing the contracted muscles and provide instant relief to you from the tension headache.

Tiger balm-Here is how you can make your own.

Posted by mark in Neck Pain Essentials |

Tiger balm is one of those wonderful things that everyone should have in their cupboards. It can be great to use on aches and pains. However, have you ever thought of making your own?

Here is how:

(Tiger balm was created by the herbalist Aw Chu Kin in Rangoon, Burma. Just before he died he asked his 2 sons to perfect his recipe and so they did, selling it with the name tiger balm (tigers are very much a sign of strength and vitality in these parts). It works by dilating the blood vessels which bring blood closer to the skin surface and creates a warm sensation. It also has a local analgesic effect to decrease pain.)

Firstly, you will need to find these essential oils(organic if possible):

A tip for neck pain relief-check your hands.

Posted by mark in Neck Pain quick tips | 0 comments

Here’s  an easy way to give you relief from your neck pain and also back pain. If you are sitting at a computer you should be sitting with good posture, in other words not slouching. As i have said before, look AT your computer not INTO it. Correct your posture and your pains will ‘magically’ disappear. So, how about those hands of yours?

If you get neck pain at the computer i can absolutely bet that you are slouching and one of the best ways to counteract this is to check if your hands are above or beyond your knees when you are at the computer. Your hands should  before your knees  if your posture is correct. If you are slouching, your arms are reaching forward and your hands are going to be beyond your knees.

For More see

The major cause of neck pain- why you are suffering right now.

Posted by mark in Neck Pain Essentials | 0 comments

Look at the weight and strain on the neck structures-thats why treatments nor exercises will make you pain free permanently

What is the major reason that exercises for neck pain do not remove your neck pain permanently? Why does massage, chiropractic, Yoga, acupuncture help you only temporarily? Why do you wake up suddenly with neck pain and cant turn your head?

Look no further than your foward head posture.

When you sit poorly and stand poorly you create stresses so great for your neck that it is virtually  impossible for you not to suffer from neck and upper back pain. Every inch your head travels forward of the central position creates and extra 10lbs of weight on your neck structures. This means that if you are sitting here reading this without sitting upright( think-if you were to drop a rock from your chin would it drop onto your chest or onto the floor?) you are probably putting anywhere between 20-40lbs of strain onto your neck.

Todays Neck Pain Exercises tip

Posted by mark in Neck Pain quick tips |

You should already know by now that the major cause of neck pain is you. If you do not then i suggest you read the links at the bottom of the page. However, a great adjunct to reinforcing your posture is to join an alexander technique class. This will help you learn better body mechanics so that your posture becomes more ingrained into your psyche.

We teach this at our spa and people absolutely love it. If you slouch then YOU WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE PAIN.

A Quick Test for your Neck Pain

Posted by mark in Neck Pain quick tips | 0 comments

yours truly explaining the major cause of neck pain

If you are reading this it’s because you suffer from neck pain and you will see in this quick test EXACTLY WHY you have neck pain and HOW to get rid of it. Neck pain is easy to fix. You will also know the answers to these questions:

• Why does my neck hurt?
• Why is my neck tense all of the time?
• Why do I have knots in my back?
• Why do I have neck pain?
• Why do neck pain exercises and stretches only work temporarily?
•  Why do I continually suffer from neck pain?
• Why do I have constant bouts of recurrent neck pain?
•  Why am I good for a while and then suddenly wake up and can’t turn my neck?